How Should We Address This Workplace Conflict Between Finance Managers?

We have written this to one of the Finance Managers. Please see below:

To: Ms. Ibe and Mr. George

CC: Human Resource, General Manager, and CEO

Most recently, it was complained that you were rude, belittling, and insulting each other at your front desks and in plain view. This was observed by other staff.

Within our own Finance Department, George Mushota complained that he was on the receiving end of rude and unprofessional behavior over the immediately stated period in the office since the last week of December. Since then, he has asked not to work with you or even be in your presence. Similarly, Ibe Annulika has also asked that she not be assigned to work with you because of habitual rude and offensive behavior.

Of great concern is your apparent failure to recognize or even admit that you often overreact and lash out at each other. Employees are expected to work together as a team and expend whatever effort is necessary to provide quality service to Premier Petroleum Limited as an organization. This is not to say that you cannot disagree with staff or other professionals. Rather, in addressing differences of opinions, you cannot be combative, insulting, belittling, or rude. This only creates friction, diminishes morale and teamwork, and poorly reflects upon Premier Petroleum Limited. You must show empathy, deal courteously with individuals, appreciate their differences, and handle emotions. When appropriate, you must show compassion for each other and recognize the contribution of each other as a team.

Equally important is that you need to listen to what others are saying.

In short, you both must agree to abide by the following principles by which you will conduct yourself in the workplace:

• You both will employ collective decision-making with your work and outside professionals and contacts to assure positive teamwork and maximize the goals of Premier Petroleum Limited.

• You both will have respect for each other's abilities, contributions, and values to Premier Petroleum Limited.

• Ine Annulika will recognize that you can learn from your co-workers and Mr. George Mushota.

• You both will deal with co-workers and others in a professional and courteous manner at all times.

• You will deal with conflict in a forthright and constructive manner and with tolerance for the differences of others.

1. In addition, I recognize that you may have certain ideas to improve your performance. Therefore, I encourage you to provide your own Personal Improvement Plan Input and Suggestions:

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Employee Signature Date

By

Mr. George, Finance Manager, replied:

To Human Resource Office: Attn of Madam Nafisa. I am very surprised, in the first place, to observe that I am receiving mail with contents of this nature from your office because administratively the office ranking does not allow you to do so. I am officially holding an office which is higher than your office, and you cannot under normal circumstances raise any disciplinary issues against me. Coming to the issues that you have raised, may I help you to understand that there is no pressure in accounts at all. The only issue that seems to be a problem is the lack of appreciation by my subordinate to understand the accounting world. She does not really understand what accounting is all about; therefore, she is finding it very difficult to understand and appreciate why we should do certain things in accounts. It is not possible for someone to perform functions of an accounting officer when he or she has no knowledge of the basic accounting fundamentals. Anulika does not understand accounts; therefore, she is misplaced and hence the confusion. Suffice it to mention that your office is responsible for creating this mess. I am even thinking that you have deliberately chosen to give me an accounting officer who does not know accounts so that I fail to perform my duties effectively. I have supervised more than 100 members of staff at once before, and I have recorded better supervising results all the time. I do not believe that Anulika should become an impossible case for me to manage. She simply does not have accounts knowledge, and she is therefore denting my management style each time I instruct her to perform accounting functions in accordance with accounting standards. Your office (H.R.) has imposed Anulika to work in the accounts department when you know very well that she does not possess accounting knowledge. Therefore, I am instructing your office to correct this irregularity as soon as possible so that I can begin to work normally and professionally.

I was also extremely shocked when Anulika mentioned in the presence of the Chief Executive Officer that she has the authority to approve payments. This way of thinking is what has created most of the misunderstandings because she is misguided. If her job description authorizes her to approve payments, then your office should be blamed for duplicating responsibilities. Accounts only allow one person to approve payments at a time. It is the responsibility of the Chief Executive Officer to approve payments, and he has delegated this responsibility to my office at the moment; therefore, we cannot share the same authority with my subordinate, which is delegated to me by my superior.

I am also disappointed to observe that your office did not take time to study and understand the so-called "pressure" in the accounts department before writing to me. May I take this opportunity to correct your understanding that there is pressure in the Finance department. There is no amount of pressure in accounts; the only difference that is creating this artificial pressure is the fact Anulika does not know accounts. You have just imposed her on me. Finally, I am requesting that Anulika be reallocated to another office because, apart from not knowing her job, she does not cooperate with me in any way. She does not respect me as an elderly person and does not take my instructions each time I talk to her. May Management consider giving me an alternative person who is well updated with accounting knowledge so that I can effectively perform my assignments without experiencing unnecessary disturbances.

Thanks, Mr. George.

Please suggest a reply to Mr. George.

Awaiting your responses.

Sincerely,

Eesa

First and foremost, whose idea was it to put things 'in writing' from HR's end? HR should have first discussed this with both parties concerned before contemplating writing the mail you posted - for two reasons:

1. To get an even handle on the scale/level of contribution of each aggrieved party to this situation.

2. Identify the actual problem areas and the possible solutions - which usually emanate from such calm and detached interaction.

To be frank, I think HR botched up the whole scenario - especially when it concerns a senior official of the company vis-a-vis a junior functionary. You ought to have exercised extra caution in ensuring that all angles are covered, including the personal animosity/differences angles.

Options Moving Forward

Coming to the options open to you now, I suggest walking up to Mr. George and trying to read through his body language while discussing what he mentioned in his response. If he blows off, just bear it and bring the discussion back to the core topic.

Next, speak to Anulika to get her side of the story. Though you think you already know it, the chances are very high that some key aspects have been missed out - which would come out only by reading her body language while speaking to her.

Also, suggest checking with others about the veracity of what Mr. George mentioned about the professional (accounts) competence of Anulika. Either Mr. George is 100% right, or he could be only partially right and could be overreacting now after seeing your mail, or there could be something else entirely between them prompting him to cast a cloud over her competence. That's for you to figure out.

Once you go through these steps, you should be able to find the most apt solution to the issue/situation. But sooner done is better for everyone, including the organization.

All the best.

Regards,
TS

Thank you for the reply. The HR interviewed both of them separately and, in general, to address this issue. We did try to sort it out verbally many times, but we failed, and again, Mr. Mushota can't resist the organizational process of writing. The idea solely came from the HR department.

Awaiting your response.

Sincerely,
Eesa

If the issue was discussed separately with both parties, please also provide the details of your/HR's 'Findings' regarding the roles of each of them leading to the current situation, which, by any measure, is quite serious. This would enable the members to give accurate and realistic suggestions.

Based on Mr. George's response, he 'seems' to have some attitude issues. However, I wouldn't like to conclude based on that aspect alone; he could be genuinely hurt by HR's letter.

It may also be relevant and important for your decision-making to consider who among the two (Mr. George and Anulika) can be considered 'more expendable,' so to say. One option that 'seems' obvious is what Mr. George suggested—Anulika be reallocated to another office. However, the downside of this option could be that Mr. George may become arrogant, and you could have a larger problem at hand later.

Before any other options are considered, please provide the details requested above. It would help to look at the situation from a larger perspective.

Regards,
TS

First of all, Mr. George is new to this organization. Annulika has been working here for a longer time than Mr. George, and Mr. George often visits the CEO's office for various account-related tasks. According to Annulika, he frequently hands over papers with just a line drawn on them, instructing her to create the format, as he lacks knowledge of even simple Excel sheets. Annulika mentioned that Mr. George does not provide any format, and if she continues with the old way of handling accounts, he expects her to follow his methods. Annulika scolded Mr. George for not properly flushing the toilet, which led to tension between them. They frequently argue, as you can see from our interactions. In short, Mr. George dislikes being questioned and asserts his knowledge, especially when it comes to salary formats, claiming it's simple and that he knows it all. Due to Annulika's assertive tone, he perceives her as rude.

I hope to receive a prompt reply on this matter, and thank you for your previous responses.

Sincerely,
Eesa.

In fact, Mr. George did say in HR separately that he didn't want to work with Annulika. Both of them want to do the same work of payment approval and want to be in contact with the CEO for all their tasks. Now Mr. George thinks there is no one to question him apart from HR. He also doesn't want anyone besides Annulika to work with him; he prefers to work alone. There is no option to relocate Annulika as she doesn't fit for any other role apart from the accounting office. Annulika is the CEO's choice to work with, as they have already finalized a finance manager.

Dear Eesa,

I have gone through the details of the facts given above by you. You have posted the reply of Mr. George but have not posted the reply of Ms. Annulika. I offer my expert views as follows:

1. The matter relates to the functioning of the Accounts Department.

2. Mr. George appears to be the Head of the Department (HOD) of Accounts. Ms. Annulika appears to be a subordinate employee.

3. Instructions always flow from a higher rank to a lower rank according to an established hierarchy.

4. The first objection raised by Mr. George is that he is superior in rank to YOU (Eesa) and you cannot issue a disciplinary memorandum (letter) to him. This needs to be checked according to the delegation of administrative and disciplinary powers of your company. If there is no such written document of DOP (Delegation of Power), then Mr. George would be justified in raising his objection. Please check this aspect carefully. A disciplinary memorandum can be issued by an authorized officer or by the CEO of the company, not by a subordinate officer. (However, there can be a legal debate on this, but that debate would arise only when there is a written DOP in place.)

5. It is claimed by Mr. George that Ms. Annulika does not have qualifications in Accounts. If this is correct, then his stand would be justified in what he has said. It may be that Ms. Annulika is an older employee and may have experience working in Accounts, but that does not make her an expert professional on the aspects of Accounting Standards notified by the Chartered Accountants Institute of your country or International Accounting Standards.

6. The bone of contention appears to be the authorization of payments. In this matter, it is also a universal rule in Accounts that "only one officer can be authorized to approve the expenditure bills for releasing the payment."

Regards,
Eesa

Authorization of Payments: A Universal Rule

The bone of contention appears to be the authorization of payments. It is a universal rule that "Only one officer can be authorized to approve bills of expenditure for the release of payments." There must always be a Finance Manual on the subject of Delegation of Financial Powers (DOFP). Mr. George is right in his stand that there cannot be two authorized persons at the department level for approving the payment. The CEO is the highest authority, and all powers are subject to his control and supervision. The CEO can exercise any or all the powers at his discretion.

Obeying Orders and Addressing Concerns

Ms. Annulika must obey the orders of her superiors. If she feels any instructions are not correct, she needs to point it out respectfully in an official manner, i.e., by email or by seeking advice in writing as a separate note.

Please look into all these details and solve your problem. If any further advice is needed, you may send an email to [Email Removed For Privacy Reasons] for more clarifications.

With regards and good wishes,

Srivastava C.M. Lal

Sorry to go off on a tangent. I hope you have not used real names but fictitious ones. If not, I suggest that you edit it. In case you have published the real correspondence that has taken place, then you could be in breach of company confidentiality.

As I understand the problem from all the posts above, it seems that Anulika is an old, experienced employee of the company and also has the backing of the CEO. George, on the other hand, is a comparative newcomer. He is her boss. However, the seasoned employee, Anulika, does not meet the expectations of her new boss, George.

Does the finance department consist of only these two employees, or are there more people working there? If more people are working there, you can discreetly find out how George behaves with the other subordinates. If the feedback shows that he is otherwise behaving appropriately with other employees, then the problem is only between these two. If the subordinate thinks that the boss is not guiding her properly and if they both simply get along well with each other, the only option is either to relocate her or, if that is not possible, remove her from service. The organization is bigger than individuals. You have to make a choice.

Before that, you may advise her to be more accommodating with the boss and work as a team instead of fighting all the time. A one-to-one meeting between both of them may be arranged with the strict mandate to come out with a solution among themselves at the end of the meeting. The boss, George, should also be categorically told that his ability depends on how he handles difficult employees and takes everyone on board with him instead of precipitating matters. He should be capable of making a team and running it. This advice should be given to him by the CEO.

Now that the matter has been raised, you have landed yourself in the middle. You have to resolve it. You need to make a report of the matter with details of your previous interactions and report the same to the CEO. Your CEO will need to decide how to resolve the matter and who is more important to him.

Two Matters of Importance

- HR has the right to raise matters that are important irrespective of whether the persons concerned are of a higher rank. I hope you are the HOD for HR or have the approval of the HOD for the mail you have sent. If that is so, you have the right to raise disciplinary issues against another person even if he is the HOD of that department. That said, it always makes sense to treat higher-ranking officers with respect and to have the CEO or director raise the matter on your behalf.

- The right to approve payment (or any other accounting function) in accounts is not necessarily the sole right of any one person. The company is free to give the right to one or more persons. Most companies have dual approval systems or slabs governing who can pass a bill, etc. It is guided solely by the policy of the company and what your accounting manual says. Again, the CEO will decide on this matter.

Regards,